When Laws Guard and Gag: The Double Edged Sword of India's Crime Control Reforms
Keywords:
Crime, BNS, National Security, Civil LibertiesAbstract
In 2023, India undertook a landmark reform of its criminal justice system by replacing three colonial-era laws—the Indian Penal Code, the Code of Criminal Procedure, and the Indian Evidence Act—with the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA). These new statutes seek to modernize the legal process, incorporate digital-era tools, and respond more effectively to emerging threats such as terrorism, mob lynching, and organized crime. However, this shift also brings with it significant concerns regarding executive overreach, vague legislative language, and potential misuse of expanded state powers. This paper critically engages with these developments through the thematic framework of “The Guard” and “The Gag,” exploring how the same legal architecture that promises public safety may also suppress dissent, civil liberties, and the rights of marginalized communities.
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1. Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India, “Press Release on the introduction of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (2023)".
2. The Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 (Act 37 of 1967).
3. The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (Act 45 of 2023), s. 113.
4. The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (Act 46 of 2023), s.187. 6 Id., ss. 106–107.
5. Tehseen S. Poonawalla v. Union of India, (2018) 9 SCC 501.
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